Continuing the trend of 2017/18, the world demand was expected to grow modestly in 2018/19. The prospects of 2018/19 were affected by the excess inventory and the low prices for most crops due to the improved economic prospects in developed countries and the political instability in some big fertilizer consumption market.

In Vietnam, enterprises in the fertilizer industry are classified according to production and business methods. The amount of fertilizer produced in the first quarter of 2019 tended to decrease compared to the same period last year. The fertilizer consumption in Q1 / 2019 decreased by 11% compared to the same period of 2018. The fertilizer industry is in the saturation state, domestic enterprises have to compete fiercely with imports, while the demand tends to decrease, leading to long-term price reduction pressure in the period of 2018f – 2020f.

In Q1 / 2019, Vietnam fertilizer imports increased 4.3% in volume over the same period of 2018. The imports of Urea rose by 34.5% over the same period due to the decrease in domestic production. DAP imports in Vietnam have been continuously declining. Potassium and SA are the most imported fertilizer because Vietnam is almost unable to produce so they depend entirely on imports.

The fertilizer exports in Q1 / 2019 decreased by 48.4% in value compared the same period in 2018 due to a decrease in domestic supply. The exported fertilizer volume in Q1 / 2019 fluctuated strongly especially in Asian markets.